Today, coinciding with the holy month of Ramadan, the "One Billion Meals" initiative launches, the largest in the region aimed at providing food support totaling one billion meals for the poor and hungry in 50 countries around the world. The initiative adopts the slogan "He who goes to bed full while his neighbor is hungry does not believe in me," contributing to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals set by the United Nations for 2030, including the goal of eradicating hunger globally.
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President of the UAE, Prime Minister, and Ruler of Dubai, announced on his Twitter account: "With God's blessing, the One Billion Meals campaign starts today... the largest campaign to provide food and combat hunger in fifty countries around the world... Ramadan is the month of fasting, during which we feel the suffering of 800 million people who go to bed hungry every day." He emphasized that "there is a real humanitarian crisis due to hunger and food security... the One Billion Meals campaign's slogan is 'He who goes to bed full while his neighbor is hungry'... we have one billion humanitarian messages from the UAE to the world, and our goal is to be the noblest people on earth."
The initiative opens channels for donations and contributions from charitable individuals and organizations, companies, businesspersons, and community members both within the UAE and beyond.
#### Approved Donation Mechanisms
The "One Billion Meals" initiative accepts donations via approved channels, including the website www.1billionmeals.ae and bank transfers to the initiative's account at Emirates NBD, account number: AE300260001015333439802 in UAE Dirhams. For those wishing to donate one Dirham daily through a monthly subscription, they can send a text message with the word "وجبة" or "Meal" to the number 1020 for Du network users, or to 1110 for Etisalat network users, and through the initiative's call center at 8009999.
On March 10, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum announced the "One Billion Meals" initiative as an extension and development of the "100 million meals" and "10 million meals" initiatives, following their success in the past two years in contributing to a food security safety net for the poor and needy, seeing it as a moral responsibility and a humanitarian commitment from the UAE to the world.
#### The UAE Strengthens its Global Humanitarian Message
Mohammed Abdullah Al Gergawi, Secretary-General of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives, affirmed that the UAE, under the leadership of President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan and with the guidance and support of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, along with Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, continues to advance its global humanitarian message, committed to improving the quality of life for people worldwide, preserving human dignity, and alleviating suffering in communities most in need.
He stated that qualitative humanitarian initiatives like "One Billion Meals" reinforce the UAE's position as an active contributor to international efforts to address and overcome humanitarian challenges, emphasizing its ongoing commitment to fully support humanitarian causes at various levels regionally and globally. He pointed out that the UAE, thanks to wise leadership's guidance, adopts a distinguished approach in enhancing charitable and humanitarian work, achieving a qualitative leap in improving relief aid areas.
He added that giving is an intrinsic Emirati culture, and generosity is a trait of the Emirati people, both leaders and citizens, with open hands extended in goodwill inside and outside the country, calling on benefactors and charitable individuals to contribute to the "One Billion Meals" initiative to achieve its humanitarian and relief goals.
#### Sustainable Option to Support the Most Needy
The "One Billion Meals" initiative opens the door for participation from all individuals and institutions, providing a sustainable option to support the most needy and those suffering from malnutrition, offering all means of participation and donations until its final goal is reached.
The "One Billion Meals" campaign, the largest of its kind in the region, promotes the values of giving and assisting through charitable and humanitarian work, focusing on the concept of sustainable community financing to provide food support and the essentials for food security to those most in need. It welcomes participation from everyone, whether through donations or via media, logistical, and field support in covered areas.
The "One Billion Meals" initiative, organized by Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives, aims to assist the most needy around the world by providing food support in all its forms to the poor and needy, in the spirit of the holy month, which emphasizes that the best charity is feeding the hungry.
#### Capitalizing on the Success of "100 Million Meals"
The "One Billion Meals" initiative builds on the unexpected success of the "100 Million Meals" campaign held last Ramadan, which exceeded its targets and raised donations to provide 220 million meals distributed entirely across several countries worldwide. Through the "One Billion Meals" initiative, efforts will continue to reach a total of one billion meals to help combat hunger and malnutrition in the most needy areas worldwide, particularly for vulnerable groups like children, refugees, internally displaced persons, and victims of disasters and crises. Under the "One Billion Meals" initiative, donations and contributions will be collected to provide and distribute an additional 780 million meals in 50 countries around the world.
The "One Billion Meals" initiative is the newest program within the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives, a global humanitarian foundation currently comprising dozens of initiatives and institutions implementing charitable and humanitarian programs worldwide across five main pillars: humanitarian and relief assistance, healthcare and disease control, spreading education and knowledge, innovating the future and entrepreneurship, and empowering communities. This supports institutional humanitarian work, ensuring its sustainability, broadening its positive impact, fostering a culture of hope in the region and the world, and contributing to achieving the desired development for a better future.
#### Expanding the Partner Network
To achieve the goal of one billion meals, "Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives" has expanded its network of humanitarian, charitable, and relief organizations worldwide, collaborating with various partners and benefactors from local, regional, and global institutions. These include the World Food Programme, the regional food bank network, the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation for Charitable and Humanitarian Works, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the UAE Food Bank, Dar Al Ber Society, Dubai Charity Association, and humanitarian and social institutions in several countries.
It is noteworthy that the series of food distribution initiatives organized by "Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives" began in Ramadan 2020 with the "10 Million Meals" campaign, which was a direct response to the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic on vulnerable and low-income communities, acting as a lifeline for many and a message of comprehensive community solidarity in the UAE for individuals and families who lost their livelihoods due to the conditions imposed by the global pandemic. This was followed in Ramadan 2021 by the "100 Million Meals" campaign, which expanded significantly to include many target groups in 50 countries worldwide.
These campaigns come amid a global challenge where hunger, malnutrition, and related diseases lead to the death of a child every 10 seconds and 25,000 people daily, of whom 10,000 are children. Approximately 800 million people worldwide go to bed hungry every day, and 52 million people in the Middle East and North Africa suffer from some form of hunger or malnutrition, most of whom are women and children.
